MILAN DAMEK AND HIS “BIKE BATTLE OF THE Ardennes"
22. 05. 2018
The seventh year of Belgian Mountainbike Challenge (BeMC) took place from May 11 to 13 in the surroundings of a francophone town La Roche-en-Ardenne in Belgium, not far from well-known Houffalize in the Valley of Ourthe River. The starting field consists of 120 elite riders with yellow numbers BeMC UCI and 450 bikers with blue numbers BeMC Open. The Kilpi Racing Team flag is represented by Milan Damek.
The bike battle of the Ardennes has just begun! The first, 86-kilometre long, stage of the race has an elevation of 2 450 m. The pace is high since the very beginning and there are many renowned cyclocross names. Sören Nissen won, Milan came twenty-fourth. The longest stage is ahead of him tomorrow.
„It was five hours of tough Belgian riding, all the time up and down around the River Ourthe.“ Says Milan Damek.
The weather forecast for the third day has come true and right after the midnight first showers appeared.
“It looked promising in the morning but before the start a rainstorm burst out that accompanied riders all the way during the beginning of the race. 69 muddy kilometres with an elevation of 2 350 m was a real fun. Here and there the visibility was literally zero. I reached the finish line in the eighteenth place and I am moving up in overall placings on the sixteenth position. Despite all the rain and mud I greatly enjoyed the race,” wrote Milan Damek right from La Roche-en-Ardenne.